


Losing Carolina

by Faith280



Category: Red vs. Blue
Genre: Deals with cancer/chemo treatments, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-03
Updated: 2019-05-16
Packaged: 2020-02-16 19:05:32
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 13
Words: 14,942
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18697429
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Faith280/pseuds/Faith280
Summary: Agent Carolina has always been the toughest Freelancer, she’s always been the best. There was never a mission that she couldn’t handle, until now; cancer. All of her military training never prepared her for this.When she starts to feel like this is the mission to give up on, Wash refuses to let her.The trouble is how can he help someone who doesn’t want to help themselves?





	1. Chapter 1

  
Aww Junior, you couldn’t make it to Thanksgiving, you missed your little brother’s birthday, you were on a mission over Christmas… I’m sick of the excuses. When are you coming home?" Tucker was almost in tears.

  
Wash accidentally walked in Tucker’s telephone conversation with his alien son, Junior. He tried to discreetly leave the room, but Tucker reached for his hand. He mouthed, "Don’t leave," to Wash.

  
"Well if something’s going on with Carolina, did you want Wash to talk to her for you?"

  
What was Tucker volunteering him for? Carolina could always take care of herself, she never needed Wash. Wait, what was he thinking about? Carolina was the best friend he ever had. If something was going on, he owed it to her to find out. He listened in to see what else Tucker said.

  
“Oh okay, if your plans change you know where to find me. And Junior, don’t forget, you’re my son, I care about you. I don’t care how old you are. I know I haven’t been there much when you were growing up, but there’s nothing I wouldn’t do for you.”

  
He was getting really choked up, he always reacted this way when he talked to Junior.

Wash came up behind him and pulled him close. Tucker gave a little smile, it made him feel better knowing that his husband still loved him, even if it felt that his own son didn’t.

  
“Yes Junior, I love you too dude. I’ll see you.” He wiped his eyes before turning to face Wash.

  
Wash gave him a sad smile. “I take it he’s not coming home for spring break either?”

  
“Nope.” He wiped away some fresh tears. “I really feel like I’m losing him.” He leaned back against Wash’s chest, stuck out his lower lip, and had a good pouting session. It helped him feel better.

  
“He said Carolina’s been acting weird, like something is bothering her. Being Carolina, she won’t tell him what it is. She’s been like a mother to him since he started in the new Freelancer Program, he doesn’t want to leave her. I’m actually kinda proud I raised a good kid.”

  
Wash’s frown deepened. He felt torn between his husband and his best friend. He really should call Carolina, but he had to handle Tucker’s temper tantrum first.

  
“If I give Carolina call, will you be alright.”

  
“Yeah sure. I’m bummed over Junior, but I still have David and Chloe to hang out with. Luckily, I’m the cool Dad, they always wanna hang out with me.”

  
He playfully elbowed Wash. It was commonly known in the household that Tucker was the fun Dad the kids  
liked to play with and Wash was the serious Dad they actually listened to.

  
At least Tucker could smile again. His heart wasn’t that terribly broken. Wash figured it was safe to talk to Carolina.

  
Their three year old son, David, went running through the room with his new baseball glove on. He looked like he was on a mission.

  
“Where you going to in such a hurry David?” Since it looked like he was going to play baseball, Tucker was hoping for an invite. He loved teaching the kids to play new sports.

  
“Out to play baseball with Chloe.”

  
“You need any help there?” Tucker still held out hope that he would get the hint.

  
“Nope Daddy, I’m good.” He gave a big smile.

  
“You’re sure you don’t want any pointers when an almost pro baseball player?”

  
“No, Chloe is better at teaching me to play than you are.” He slammed through the back door.

  
Chloe was right behind him. She was trying to run and fumble with putting her shoe on at the same time. Wash’s frown deepened at that, he thought it looked too dangerous.

  
“Chloe, stop and then put your shoe on. You’re going to fall honey.”

  
She gave him an exasperated sigh. “But Dad, I have to get outside. David’s already throwing a fit that I’m taking too long.”

  
“Stopping to fix your shoe will take all of 30 seconds. I think you can spare that much time.”

  
Tucker gave it another shot. “You know, I can go out there and help you teach David to throw a baseball.” Chloe was his girl, she still wanted him around.

  
She hesitated. “No, that’s okay. I got it.”

  
Tucker was getting ticked. “So you seriously don’t want me either?”

  
“No, you’re too bossy and you’ll try to take over. That’s why David wants me to teach him.”

  
He felt so let down. He lowered his head and couldn’t even look at her. Chloe knew how sensitive her Dad got, she took pity on him.

  
“Maybe you can come out later and help us.” She gave him a kiss on the cheek. “Love you Daddy.” She took off after her brother.

  
Tucker huffed. “Don’t bother. I don’t want or need her pity.”

  
He tried to act tough, but it was too much for him to handle. Within five minutes, he felt like all three of kids hated him; he was such a failure. He was amazed that Wash just didn’t want to pick up and leave him for somebody better.

  
Wash hated seeing that hurt look on Tucker’s face. “Are you going to be okay hon?”

  
“All of my kids hate me, of course I’m not alright. You’re probably gonna take off on me next...I wouldn’t blame you.”

  
“Oh my god, the kids are seven and three, all they care about playing, it’s nothing personal about you. Junior is growing up, he’s trying to make his own way in life. That’s how well you raised him. And you know I would never leave you. You’re the love of my life. So enough of all the damned drama!”

  
Tucker still tried to look injured, but Wash made him smile. “Yes sir!” He saluted Wash like they were at work. “You know this is why I love ya babe. It’s all this tough love.”

  
Wash was glad to see Tucker feeling better. “You’re not going to perish or run away on me so I can check in on Carolina, are you?”

  
“Nah, I’m feeling better. I’m going to hang out with the kids whether they like it or not.”

  
“That’s the spirit.”

  
He almost hated having Tucker leave, he may need the moral support to find the courage to dial the phone. He’s known Carolina longer than he’s known anyone else here on Chorus. He was the person who really knew her. Hell, he knew her better than she knew herself.

  
So why the hell was it so hard to talk to her?  
  



	2. Chapter 2

 

The phone rang. It was Carolina, she beat him to the phone call. “Hey ‘Lina, I was just about to call you. Junior was talking to Tucker about you. Is something wrong?”

  
She drew in a deep breath. “Why… who said anything was wrong?”

  
She always had a quick temper, but it was unusual for her to snap at Wash like that for no good reason. He was beginning to see why Junior was concerned about her.

  
“Uh, no reason, I was only asking. So what’s up?”

He tried to keep worry out of his voice. But Carolina was like family to him. It was his nature to worry over everybody and never focus on himself. Carolina knew this about him.

  
“Wash, I’m sorry about that. I didn’t mean it the way it sounded.” She hesitated, then she got quiet. “How do you handle it when your PTSD gets really bad?”

  
Wash sighed, he wished he could answer that question for himself. Some nights he was fine, and other nights, his screaming was so loud, he scared the kids pretty badly. His best technique was to tolerate it as normal life, it would probably never go away.

  
“The nightmares getting to you too ‘Lina?”

  
“Yes, but only just recently. Over the years, I’ve learned to disassociate myself from all the hell we’ve been through. At one point I was nothing more to the UNSC than a trained killing machine. That was my only way to not go insane. It wasn’t until York…” Her voice broke at the mention of his name. “Until York was killed, did I feel anything.”

  
“Are you flashing back to the old killing missions?”

  
“No, I’m flashing back to my past with York. I’m remembering everything we ever did together, every dumbass thing he said or did. Every time I close my eyes, I see him. When he died, I pushed his memory out of my mind, now he’s haunting me.”

  
Carolina sounded thoroughly spooked. Wash wished he knew how to help her. His first boyfriend North Dakota was killed in battle too. Wash had been devastated, he didn’t think he could go on, but he did.

  
In the years that followed, he thought about North a lot. They say time heals, but more often, it makes it worse. It became more definite that North was never coming back.

  
But Wash was saved from that loneliness. That was how he ended up with the Reds and Blues. That was how he met Tucker. Now they were married and had two kids. He would never be alone again.

  
He tried to bring Carolina into the family group that the Reds and Blues had created, but she was too much of a loner. After watching her real and Freelancer families die around her, she was too afraid to let anyone else in. She even kept Wash at a distance. She was afraid she’d lose him too.

  
“I wish I could give some advice that would actually help you, but I’m still figuring that out for myself. Maybe your holding onto his memory because you didn’t have the chance to grieve properly?”

  
She let out a deep sigh. “Wash, believe me, I grieved the day he died. I tried hard not to let anybody see it. I almost died that day, I had the knife in my hand, it was by my throat, but I couldn’t do it. He wouldn’t have wanted me to kill myself.”

  
“Oh god, I’m so sorry, I didn’t know. You knew you could have come to me. I’d understand.”

  
“It’s okay Wash. You were recovering from your own wounds and from North. It’s all okay now.” She stopped to clear her throat. “I also needed to ask a favor.”

  
“Sure, ask away.”

  
“I noticed you were back working part time for the Army, you ever be interested in taking a minor Freelancer mission? It will be like when we use to be partners.”

  
“Uh, I don’t think so. A minor mission with you involved turns into a major one. I’m getting too old to keep up with you. Besides, I have the kids. I can’t exactly go away on a mission that I might not come back from alive.”

  
“That’s okay Wash, I understand. Junior’s been driving me crazy, I thought maybe he wanted a break to visit with Tucker.”

  
“Why, what’s he doing?”

  
“He seems to think something’s wrong with me. We had a particularly tough case, and we could hardly break it. When we finished, I kind of passed out. I let myself get overly tired was all. I feel exhausted like I’ve been fighting the flu. He thinks that I need a break.”

  
“If you need a vacation, you’re more than welcome to stay with us. The kids missed seeing you over the holidays. You’re in trouble with David for missing his birthday.”

  
Carolina chuckled at the very mention of the Tucker kids. “Well, I sent him some toys and a birthday card. I even called him in person to tell him happy birthday. What more did he want?”

  
“He wanted you in person. Chloe’s always asking when you’re coming to see her. That kid idolizes you.”

  
Carolina caught herself smiling when she thought about those kids. She never thought she liked kids; until she met Chloe and David. She loved those two, she would do anything for them. She wished she could have had a family with York. He loved kids.

  
“That’s really touching, but I have to pass, I don’t need a vacation. I have to keep moving, that will keep the nightmares away.”

  
“Well, I hope they do stay away for you. If it works, let me know. I may try it myself.”

  
She chuckled. “I sure will.” She stopped mid sentence. “Oh man, I felt so dizzy there. I thought I was going to faint.”

  
Wash was sick with worry. “Are you alright ‘Lina?”

  
Her voice sounded strange. “Oh yeah, I’m fine…oh god, Wash help me…”

  
He heard the thud of her body as it hit the floor. “‘Lina! Can you hear me? I’m coming to get you, hang in there.” He had no idea what was wrong with her, but this couldn’t be good. Oh please, don’t let her die.

  
He prayed he could get to her in time.


	3. Chapter 3

 

Wash couldn’t rush fast enough to get to Carolina’s side. He was in shock when he saw her. She was so pale. What happened to her?

 

Carolina’s head was spinning. She was aware of Wash leaning over her and holding her hand. She tried to open her eyes, but they wouldn’t open.

She knew how worried Wash had to be at this point. She desperately wanted to open her eyes and tell him she’d be okay.

She couldn’t find the words. At this point, she didn’t believe it herself.

 

  
“‘Lina I’m here, you’ll be okay. I won’t leave you. I’m going to get you help.”

  
All he knew was to take her to the hospital, Dr. Grey would know what to do. He gently picked her up. My god, she barely weighed anything. She had always been muscular and solid, now she was almost skeletal. How much has she been overworking?

  
As carefully as Wash picked her up, she still moaned in pain. “I’m sorry ‘Lina, there’s no other way.”  
Her eyelids fluttered open, she wanted to look at Wash, she needed to see those sad, beautiful blue eyes.

She couldn’t focus very well, Wash looked all blurry. But she could that pain in his eyes, and it was all her fault. The guilt made her forget her own pain.

  
“Wash…” she couldn’t get the words out.

  
“Shh, don’t try to talk. Hang on, I’m getting you to Dr. Grey.”

  
“No…” She moaned before passing out again.

  
Wash figured it was for the best, at least she wasn’t in pain now.

 

Dr. Grey took one look at Carolina and turned pale. She had two of her nurses at her side. “Get room 2B ready, we have to keep her as comfortable as possible, I don’t know how bad off she is.”

  
They rushed to get the room ready and Wash gently laid her on the bed. Dr. Grey pushed him towards the door. “Alrightie Wash, you got her this far, the rest is up to me.”

  
He reluctantly backed through the door, keeping Carolina in sight for as long as possible. He was scared he wouldn’t see her again.

He settled in the waiting room with his eyes glued to the door, waiting for Dr. Grey.

  
It seemed like an eternity, but the door opened. Dr. Grey stepped out to talk to him. She had her newly adopted daughter, Maddie, in one arm and the other arm held Carolina’s medical chart.

  
Wash frowned. He knew some of Grey’s medical techniques were questionable, though it was always the right choice in the end. But was hanging out with her Mom in the hospital the best choice for a 15 month old baby?

  
“Should you really have the baby with you while you’re working?” He reached over to touch Maddie’s hand. She giggled and cooed at him. Wash and Tucker had become two of her favorite babysitters.

  
Dr. Grey scoffed at his concern. “Of course it is, she loves it here. She has gotten so much better at her socialization skills. She likes people now, she’s not afraid of them. I only have her with me now so she could say hi to you.”

  
She gave Maddie a gentle nudge. “Hi Uncle Wash.” Her verbal skills have improved too since the doctor adopted her. He was so glad she ended up with the perfect parent for her.

  
“Hi sweetie.” He gave her cheek a little squish. He turned to the doctor. “How is Carolina doing?”

  
“Weell, I can say that she is stable, but she is very dehydrated and severely anemic. I’ve already put her on IV fluids. The problem is I don’t know why she’s failing. She’s been one of the toughest people I’ve ever seen. Has she mentioned any symptoms to you?”

  
Wash looked so lost. “No, we’ve hardly spoken to each other in a while. Junior mentioned to Tucker that she was acting strange, but he wasn’t clear on the details.”

  
Dr. Grey looked thoughtful. “Yeah, being an alien, English isn’t his strongpoint. I may as well wait for her to wake up and scrutinize her myself.” She has an evil grin. “She’s quite a hostile personality, this should be fun.”

  
“When can I see her?”

  
“Oh, give her some time, she needs to rest. Now that she has the IV, when she wakes, she should feel a great deal better.”

  
“When do you think you’ll know what’s wrong with her?”

  
“Well, I’ll ask her a few questions, but rely mostly on a blood test for now. Her symptoms could mean any number of illnesses, straight to being purely fatigue. It’ll take time. I’ll keep you posted on any updates, Ookaay?”

  
Wash shrugged, it would have to be. “Yes, thank you.” He waved to the baby. “Bye Maddie.”

  
She waved back shyly. “Bye bye.”  
He was left with nothing else to do except wait. He figured he’d call Tucker and check in on the kids.

  
“Hi babe, how’s Carolina?”

  
“The same, she’s stable but still unconscious.”

  
“How are you holding up?”

  
“I’m fine, what kind of question is that to ask me?”

  
“Hey, I know how you love to worry, and Carolina is your bestie. You’ll worry over her like you do for the kids and I.”

  
“I can’t help it, that’s my nature. Carolina is like a big sister to me. We’ve been through a lot of shit together. We were the only two Freelancers to survive. I can’t lose her now.”

  
Tucker understood. “Yeah, I know that babe. We all owe her a lot. We would have died years ago if she didn’t always come and bail us out.”

  
“I don’t know how how long I’m going to be up here. Are you okay by yourself with the kids?”

  
“Yeah, of course. They both are scared for their Aunt ‘Lina, so she better pull through. Chloe was practically in tears and David has already colored her a get well card.”

  
Wash gave a chuckle. Those kids could drive him crazy, but they were such sweet hearts most of the time. “I’ll make sure to tell her when she wakes up. That’ll perk her up.”

  
There was a sudden loud bang coming from Carolina’s room. “Tucker, I have to go. I might have an emergency. I’ll talk to you soon.”

  
A group of nurses went into her room only to run out just as quickly. Wash heard one call out. “The patient is awake, go find Dr. Grey, I don’t want to be in the room alone with her.”

  
Wash had to laugh. It sounded like someone was feeling better. He couldn’t be more relieved.


	4. Chapter 4

 

Carolina woke up blinded by the fluorescent lights. She was back in the Freelancer’s lab, waking up after the implant surgery for her AI’s, Iota and Eta. The flashing of the lights, doctor’s and lab technicians running around.

  
She felt the stabbing pain from the AI’s as they fought for control of her mind. The phrase ‘Allison’ running through her head. It wouldn’t stop, someone make it stop!

  
She jumped up from her hospital bed with a scream of anguish. People in white coats fled. She was held back by the needle in her arm. What the hell was this?

  
She started to rip off the tape that was connecting her to the needle. Her nightmare still ran clearly through her head. She didn’t know where she was and she had to escape from it.

  
“No no no! You don’t want wanna do that sweetie.” Dr. Grey, with little Maddie still in her arms, rushed to push Carolina back down on the bed.

  
Carolina was ready for a fight, at first she didn’t even recognize the doctor. Slowly, her mind adjusted and she knew who Dr. Grey was.

  
“Why am I here? What’s with this damned needle? Where are Eta and Iota?” She looked around in panic, but no one else was in the room.

  
“Slow down girlie. You’ve had a few problems, Washington brought you in a little while ago, you took a big spill. You’ve been unconscious ever since. That needle is helping to hydrate your body, you were very dehydrated. And I’m sorry but I have no idea who Eta and Iota are. Does that info help any?”

  
Carolina sat still, her brain trying to process all the insanity she’d been through just in the last few minutes. She covered her face with her hands and took in a deep breath. She still didn’t know what to think.

  
“I don’t have time for this.” She held up her arm with the needle attached. “Take this out or I’m ripping it out myself. I’ll drink a bunch of water and head on to my next mission.”

  
Grey shook her head. “No, I don’t think so. This extreme kind of dehydration isn’t normal, you can’t fix it by drinking a gallon of water. Your body is trying to tell you something is wrong and you’re not listening.”

  
She gave an exasperated sigh. “I don’t have time to slow down. I planned on a nice relaxing workout before heading over to my next mission. I’m going to miss my flight.”

  
“Then you’ll be missing your flight, you’re in my care now, I say you’re not leaving.”

  
Carolina just looked at her. No one ever dared to talk back to her, it was like suicide. Dr. Grey was either was either brave or very stupid, and someone with a 240 IQ, you’d think she’d know better. Carolina decided to let the comment slide. Though she did continue to work on removing her needle.

  
Dr. Grey set the baby down and went to Carolina’s bedside.

“Please leave it alone. Something is wrong with you, let me find out what it is so I can fix it. You’re the best solider on Chorus, we can’t afford to lose you.”

  
The sudden seriousness of the doctor’s voice made Carolina stop. She and Grey had not always seen eye to eye on most things, but Dr. Grey had saved so many of their soldiers, and especially Wash’s life.

No matter how much they disagreed, Grey had clearly earned Carolina’s respect. That wasn’t an easy thing to do.

  
She closed her eyes for a second, took in a deep breath, and couldn’t believe she was going to give in to this looney doctor. She settled back down in the bed.

  
“Fine, go on with what you need to. But you get me out of here as fast as you can.”

  
“Yes ma’am.” Grey saluted her with a smile. Carolina groaned and rolled her eyes. This was going to be a long recovery.

  
“Alrightee then, first off is a simple blood sample. I hope you’re not squeamish, this may pinch a little bit. I’ll go get my supplies and we’ll get down to business.”

  
Maddie started crying. She was having too much excitement for one day. Carolina looked up. It was the first time she realized the baby was in the room.

  
“You seriously have a kid with you in the examining room?”

  
“Oh yes, she’s the best cure to any ailment you got.” She thrust Maddie at Carolina. “Here, hold her for a minute while I gather my stuff.”

  
Carolina stiffly held Maddie. She looked down at her like she didn’t didn’t know what to do with this little person. Maddie looked up at her in awe, she didn’t know whether to like Carolina or to cry about it.

  
Maddie’s genuine reaction made Carolina smile at her. “I totally agree with you on this kid.”

Maddie smiled back at Carolina. She reached up to play with her long red ponytail. She seemed mesmerized by the color of red.

  
Carolina settled back against the pillows with the baby in her arms and let her play with her hair. Turned out Dr. Grey was right, Maddie could cure any ailment. Grey returned with the syringe way too soon.

  
She smiled at watching Carolina hold Maddie. “Yep, I figured you two would be friends. I’ve worked hard the last four months to socialize her all kinds of people, even hostile ones like you, sweetie.” She gave Carolina a teasing smile.

  
Carolina glared and rolled up her sleeve. “Call me ‘sweetie’ one more more time, I’ll jab you with the needle. Let’s get this over with.”

  
Grey had to work hard to find a vein for the needle. When she finally found one, she had trouble pulling enough blood for the sample. That had her more concerned.

  
Carolina’s frown deepened. “What’s taking it so long?”

  
“I’m having trouble getting enough blood. Have you been eating enough lately?”

  
Carolina had to think about it. “No, I guess not, I hadn’t thought about it. Lately whenever I eat I get sick, so it’s hard finding food I can keep down, I’ll usually skip it. I’m always so busy anyway, I forget to eat a lot of the time.”

  
She didn’t think it was a big deal until she saw Grey’s reaction.

“You know that’s not good for you. No wonder your body is rebelling. I’m gonna analyze your blood sample and take it from there.”

  
“I don’t like the look on your face.”

  
“Oh no worries.” She stopped short, she was lost in her thoughts. “On second thought, I may set up for a pelvic ultrasound. Might as well get the worst case scenarios out of the way first!”

She was faking too much enthusiasm, Carolina didn’t trust it.

  
“You have a visitor in the waiting room that has been patiently waiting to see you, so I’ll let him come in soon. I’ll be busy busy working!”

  
At the mere mention of Wash, Carolina perked up. What she wouldn’t give to see a nice, normal face around here.  
  



	5. Chapter 5

  
Wash peeked in through the door. Carolina was waiting for him. “Hey ‘Lina. Wow, do you look better. You had me scared.”

  
“Yeah, I guess the doc’s needle torture and child therapy really works.”

  
“I’ll say, Maddie is such a sweetheart, she can liven up any room.”

  
Carolina got a look of panic. “Oh no, I have to call Kimball. She had an assignment for me, I missed my flight awhile ago. I need to see if I can catch a later shuttle.”

She tried to jump off the bed. Wash had to hold her back.

  
“Woah, sit back down. You are looking better, but you are no condition to be doing any work right now. Junior will be taking over your mission for you.”

  
She huffed loudly. “You’ve got yo be kidding me, do you know how weak this makes me look? This is only from overworking. Ill make sure to not skip meals and hydrate regularly. There, problem solved.”

  
Dr. Grey startled them. “No Carolina, it’s not going to be as easy as that.” Her face looked as glum as her voice sounded. “I’m afraid this might be the worst case scenario.”

  
Carolina looked confused. “What’s the worst case scenario? All you did was pull a vial of blood. How much can you tell from that?”

  
“Not enough to know for sure, but I’ve been a doctor long enough to know when you’re not only suffering from fatigue.”

  
Wash’s heart went cold. “What is the worst case scenario?” He was so afraid to ask.

  
“Cancer, your blood test showed an abnormally high count of a protein called CA-125. That’s our first indication of ovarian cancer. Based on your list of symptoms, it all falls into place.”

  
Carolina frowned. She had no idea how she was supposed to feel. Her life has revolved around the military. There was guidance and structure, she wasn’t supposed to think on her own.

After leaving the Freelancer program, it was a daily struggle trying to fit into normal, everyday living.

  
Wash adjusted to it much easier than she did. He gasped and tightened his grip on her hand. She could only sit and stare at the doctor.

  
Dr. Grey tried to sound encouraging. “Now this was only a blood test, it’s not definite on anything. I’ll schedule you for the pelvic ultrasound. I’ll study the pictures and be able to tell you for sure. Wash, you have a few more minutes for visiting, but then I’ll have to ask you to leave.”

  
Wash nodded, he was in too much pain to think. He knew nothing about ovarian cancer, or any other cancer for that matter, but it sounded bad.

The physical changes to Carolina in only a short time…oh god, he couldn’t lose her. She was being so quiet about it and that scared him.

  
He had to stay positive for her. “You know, it’s like she said, this was only a blood test. It could have been a stomach flu gone bad. It’s nothing to worry about.”

  
She tried to smile at him, but she felt all dead inside. She couldn’t even find the strength to squeeze his hand. She nodded with tears in her eyes.

“Go home and spend some time with your family. You don’t need to babysit me.”

  
She wanted Wash to leave so she could cry. She was tough, she wouldn’t let anyone see her fall apart. Even her best friend.

  
Wash gave her one last look, he didn’t want to leave. “Okay, but you call me and keep me posted. If you need me, I can be here in a flash.”

  
“Alright, I will.” He had barely closed the door, when her tears flowed down her cheeks.

  
Dr. Grey came through the door. “Shit.” She quickly wiped away the tears, but not before the doctor saw them.

  
She gently took out the IV. “I have the x-ray lab all ready for you.”

  
Carolina had one last sniffle, her voice sounded funny. “Alright.” She spent the next hour of hell being x-rayed, poked and prodded. She hated this, it made her feel weak.

  
She was relieved when the doctor announced, “All done sweetie.” She gave Carolina a teasing smile, she was purposely trying to cheer her up.

  
Carolina glared and rearranged the annoying hospital gown that she had to wear. “I hate this stupid thing, isn’t there anything more practical to wear?”

  
“Nope sorry, everyone hates those gowns . Go ahead back to your room, I’ll be there in a minute.”

  
“When will you have the results of the x-ray?”

  
“Should be first thing in the morning. I wish it was faster, but Chorus isn’t super advanced on our technology.”

  
She nodded and headed back to her dreaded hospital room.

Dr. Grey came in soon with a dinner tray. “I need you to force yourself to eat. I thought some good old chicken noodle soup would do the trick. You need some protein.”

  
Carolina made a face when she put the bowl of soup in front of her. “I hate soup, it reminds of being sick.”

  
Dr. Grey crumbled some crackers in it for her and took ahold of the spoon. “This is what I have to do to get Maddie to eat. Now do I seriously have to feed you too?”

  
Carolina glare deepened, she couldn’t believe she was letting this doctor treat her like a child.

She roughly grabbed the spoon away from her. “Get out of my face. I’ll eat it if it makes you leave.” She ate a spoonful of the soup.

  
Dr. Grey gave a smile, she knew it would work. “Good girl. I’ll leave the IV out for now, just try to drink plenty of water for me tonight. I’ll bring you a sedative later to help you sleep.”

  
Carolina stopped eating and nodded. “Thank you. I’m not good at being an invalid, so expect some abuse.”

  
“Don’t worry about it, It’s nothing I can’t handle. I promise you, no matter what your tests results are, I can help you through this. You have a great support system. We all will help you through it.”

  
She couldn’t help it, the tears flowed again. She couldn’t hold them back. She tried to wipe them away.

Dr. Grey took hold of her arm. “No don’t stop. Cry it out, you’ll be amazed how much it will help. It’s not weakness.” She left to let her eat her dinner in peace.

  
Carolina had a good cry. After years of battles and bravery, she felt she deserved it.  



	6. Chapter 6

 

Carolina tossed and turned in her sleep. A familiar gold form came in front of her. She was looking at York.

  
He looked so lovingly at her.   
“‘Lina, I understand why you did the things you did, I just wish you didn’t. I learned to let things go, you should too. Make a fresh start over, with me.” He held out his hand. Carolina was so tempted to take it.

  
That was her one regret through her entire relationship with York, she didn’t walk away and start a new life over with him while she still could. Now he was gone.

Those words from his last journal entry still haunted Carolina to this very day.

  
She reached out her hand, he disappeared. She screamed out in her sleep. “No York, come back. Don’t leave me again.”

  
A pair of hands shook her awake. “Carolina, you’re only dreaming. Wake up before you hurt yourself.”

  
She opened her eyes and was looking up at Dr. Grey’s violet blue eyes. She looked around the room. York was gone; guess he was never there to begin with. At a time like this, she wished she had him there.

  
The dream still swirled around her. She tried to lay back down, but she felt York nearby. For the first time, she wondered how Dr. Grey got to her room so fast.

  
“Why are you here?” The doctor looked half asleep herself.

  
“Oh, I never left your room. I felt guilty for making Wash leave you. I figured you needed somebody with you. So I stayed.”

  
“You’ve been here all night?” Grey had on purple pajamas and her short purple tinted hair was a mess.

  
“Yep, I dropped Maddie over to stay the night with Simmons and Grif, and I’ve been here with you ever since.”

  
“Oh, well thanks.” She didn’t know what else to say.

  
“Dreaming about York, huh?”

  
She didn’t like talking about him. “Yeah, I keep flashing back to the moments he was still alive. All this stress has triggered my PTSD.”

  
“That’s understandable.”

  
Carolina turned to face the wall. She didn’t like talking about this to Dr. Grey, she didn’t even feel comfortable talking about it with Wash.

All she needed now was a psychoanalyst. She already knew how screwed up her life was.

  
Despite her best intentions, she dozed back off. She was awoken by her door opening.

It was Dr. Grey again. “Oh sorry, didn’t mean to wake you.”

  
“That’s okay, I’m up.” She sat up and tried to fix her long red hair. It had come loose from the ponytail and she hadn’t bothered to fix it.

  
Dr. Grey’s eyes looked red like she had been crying. Carolina’s heart felt like it stopped beating. She knew what news was coming.

  
Grey held her ultrasound pictures in her hand. “So, do you want the good news or the bad news?”

  
Carolina sighed deeply. She had to try to remember why she didn’t want to punch the doctor. “Quit playing games and just tell me the truth.”

  
“Alrightee, there are major tumors in both of your ovaries. I won’t know if they’re malignant until I go in for the surgery.”

  
“How can there be any good news to my diagnosis?”

  
“If they’re cancerous, we caught it pre-advanced. Ovarian cancer is known as a silent killer. If your body didn’t give out on you, we wouldn’t know until it was too late.”

  
Carolina’s head was spinning. “So now what do I do?”

  
“Well, have you ever had children?”

  
She frowned. “No.”

  
“Do you plan on ever having any?”

  
Her frown deepened. “No…I guess not.”

  
“Okay, then the next step is easy, a total hysterectomy. That will handle most of the cancer.”

  
“That seems extreme. But what do you mean ‘most of the cancer’?”

  
“Some has spread to the outer tissues. To kill those, we’ll blast it with some chemotherapy. Like I said, we caught this pretty early. You shouldn’t be on the chemo very long.”

  
Carolina was very quiet. “What if I choose not to do any of this? How long do I live if I just walk away?”

  
Dr. Grey looked at her so seriously. “At this rate, not even six months. You’re still young and healthy, but your strength won’t hold it off much longer.”

  
She closed her eyes for a second. Maybe this was what the dreams meant. York was trying to tell her something, maybe this was her time to die. She knew her luck would run out eventually, it was only a matter of time. At least this way, she could go out on her own terms.

  
Dr. Grey sensed her stress. “If I could give you my honest medical   
advice…”

  
“I didn’t ask you for your opinion.” She made a face as soon as she snapped it. She didn’t want to take it out on the doctor. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean it that way.”

  
“I understand, you’re going through a lot right now. I’ll let you think about this. Wash has phoned that he’s coming down to see you soon. Talk it over with him first.”

  
“Okay, I’ll do that.” She tried to lean back against the pillows. The cold pounding of her heart made it hard to relax. Luckily the commotion from the waiting room helped her.

  
Simmons showed up with Maddie and he had Mira with him. Carolina could hear her shrill voice screeching from the waiting room. She smiled, Mira was such a spunky kid.

  
“I wanna see Aunt ‘Lina!”

  
Simmons yelled at her. “No, Aunt ‘Lina is sick, don’t bother her. You can see her later when she’s feeling better.”

  
“Aww, Daddy.”

  
Carolina used her best military voice. “Simmons, bring that kid back here, NOW!”

  
Mira came running back. “Aunt ‘Lina, I got some flowers for you.” She threw a tiny bouquet of half dead daisy type white weeds at her. “I picked them myself.”

  
The dirt and roots shook off of them as Carolina took them. “I can see you certainly did. They’re beautiful, thank you Mira.”

  
She smiled and looked so proud of herself. Then her father saw the trail of dirt she left through Carolina’s hospital room.

  
“Really Mira, why would you pick the roots? You were only supposed to get the stems.”

  
Mira made a face. “This way she can plant them and think of me.” She was sitting on the bed beside Carolina, her arms around her.

  
Carolina held her tight, never wanting wanting to let go. “I certainly will. I’ll have Dr. Grey put them in her greenhouse for me.”

  
Simmons felt embarrassed. “I’m sorry she came barging in here and bugging you like this.”

  
“No, don’t be, this is exactly what I needed.”

  
“Mira, we have to go, it’s not visiting hours yet. We’ll get kicked out.”

  
“Aww, I don’t wanna.”

  
“You can come back later today and spend some time with her. I promise.”

  
Carolina surprised him. “Good, you make sure she comes back, and the boys too. I need their company.”

  
Carolina was always nice to the kids, but she was never the type to be motherly. “Yeah sure, I’ll do that. Come on Mira.”

  
Carolina hated to see them go. Now all she was left with was the ghost of York.


	7. Chapter 7

 

“Knock knock ‘Lina, can I come in?” Wash gave her his special dorky smile.

  
“Sure Wash.” She greeted him with a smile.

  
Then she got a better look at his face. He was trying to cheer her up, but his eyes betrayed him. His eyes held too much expression, she felt that was one of his biggest flaws as a Freelancer. He couldn’t lie to her.

  
“Dr. Grey told you didn’t she?”

  
Wash looked guilty. “Well…Yeah, but we’re like family. She thought I should know.”

  
Carolina sighed. “Just don’t go around treating me like an invalid or a freak. I may be sick, but I can still kick your butt.”

  
“I totally believe that, that’s why I won’t. I was putting together a little strategy to go by as your recovering, especially from the surgery. The chemo treatments are going to be rough though.”

  
“Whoa, who said I was doing the surgery and the chemo? My choice is to let the cancer run its course.”

  
He looked confused, why wouldn’t she want treatment? “But you’ll die.”

  
“That’s the general idea.”

  
“You can’t be serious, you have every chance in the world to get better. Why wouldn’t you?”

  
“Why would I? I have no family left, the love of my life was killed, I watched the best friends I’ve ever had pretty much kill each other…I’ve had enough, let me go Wash.”

  
“No way, you still have me. You are a part of my family. My kids love you. Tucker loves to pick on you. You’re my best friend.”

  
“That’s your kind of life, not mine. I choose to die.”

  
A fire was lit in Wash’s heart, he couldn’t stand hearing her talk like that.

  
“Alright then, I’ll make you a deal. You said earlier you can still kick my butt. Let’s go outside and you can prove it. If you win, you can go do whatever you want; go die if you want to. If I win, you play by my rules.”

  
She never saw him this serious, this grown up. If he had taken that kind of intensity during their years with the Freelancers, he would have been higher in the leaderboard. Even in her weakened state, she could have broken him in two, but she wouldn’t.

  
“Forget it Wash, I’ll play by your rules.”

  
Deep down, she did want the help, she didn’t want to sit and wait to die. Wash just gave her the motivation to fight through it.

  
She gave him a cocky grin. He read the message loud and clear, she did need him. He was never more relieved, he didn’t feel like getting beat up.

  
“Okay, as soon as you can leave the hospital after your surgery, you’re coming home with me. We’ll be fixing up the play room into a temporary bedroom for you.”

  
“Wash, I can’t have you go through this much trouble.”

  
“It’s no trouble at all. I’ll pick up your stuff at your apartment and have the room ready for you. You’ll be able to do your chemo treatments by outpatient. We’ll work out our schedules so either Tucker or I can take you.”

  
“Good god, you and the doctor really thought of everything.”

  
“We both want you to be safe. And the kids are so excited to be seeing you so often. Chloe volunteered to be your hairdresser in case your hair falls out from the treatments.”

  
She groaned, she never thought about that. She covered her head with the blanket.

  
Wash gave a little chuckle. “You’ll get through it. That’s the least of your problems.”

  
She made a face. “Yeah I guess.”

  
Dr. Grey came in. “Well, what’s the verdict guys.” She had her fingers crossed.

  
Carolina rolled her eyes. “I’ll go ahead with the damned surgery, if you two will leave me alone.”

  
Dr. Grey gave a big smile. “I was hoping for that. I had fingers, toes, and eyes crossed for luck. I thought Wash would be able to beat some common sense into you.”

  
Wash got pale. After the way he talked to Carolina earlier, he was pressing his luck as it was.

  
Carolina gave a little smile. “Oh yeah, he was definitely so brutal about it, that I had to give in.”

  
“Aww, the besties, it’s so sweet. I’ll schedule your surgery, and we’ll be able to figure out your chemo schedule from there. Bye bye.”

  
Carolina tried to look agitated, but failed. She was actually quite fond of Dr. Grey. “God, sometimes I wish there were other actual doctors to go to.”

  
“Yeah, but she means well.”

  
Their visit wasn’t too long before Dr. Grey flounced back in the room. “Alrightee, good news, I have a spot open for your hysterectomy tonight. It’s a minimally invasive surgery. This way, I can examine the tumors and know exactly what we’re dealing with. Then we can plan our attack strategy from there.”

  
She looked proud of herself for using military terms. Carolina rolled her eyes, but Wash smiled and gave her a thumbs up. Between the two of them, this was going to be a long recovery.

  
“Okay whatever, just get it done before I change my mind.”

  
Wash patted Carolina’s hand. “I’ll let you guys get to work. I’ll head over to your apartment and get some things that you’ll need. I’ll be back to stay with you after the surgery.”

  
At the sight of Wash leaving, she got so choked up. She hated the thought of being alone. Here she was, the great Carolina, about to be taken down by a pointless illness. She was always the best, always the strongest, so why was cancer the one thing that terrified her?

 

  
She laid on the operating table counting down to when the anesthesia would kick in. She was on the barrier between sleep and consciousness. That’s when she found York.

  
He had the same easygoing smile, brown wavy hair, one warm brown eye, the other clouded over and scarred thanks to a training sequence gone wrong. He was flicking a lighter, his trademark move when flirting with women, especially Carolina. His smile got wider as Carolina walked closer to him.

  
“Hey ‘Lina, I miss you. I would have asked you to marry me, but I was afraid you’d take out my one good eye. Come with me now.” He held out his hand.

  
“York? This can’t be real?” As she moved closer to him, he moved further away. She was aware of Dr. Grey’s high pitch voice screaming through the fog.

  
“Oh my god, she flatlined. Why are we losing her? Carolina, come back, I don’t want to lose you.”

  
Carolina hesitated, she wanted to turn back, but she couldn’t. She had disappointed York long enough. “I’m sorry…”

  
It was all warm and bright.  



	8. Chapter 8

 

“Give me some room!” Dr. Grey pushed her nurses out of the way. She was determined to never lose a patient. She started CPR, desperate to bring Carolina back in time.

  
In the dream, Carolina screamed, “No, send me back!”

  
Within seconds, her heart monitor beeped steadily again. Dr. Grey gave a heavy sigh. “Oh man, that was close. I’m finishing up here before she flatlines again.” She expertly stitched up the small incision, and Carolina was out of danger.

 

  
When Carolina awoke, she was in her darkened hospital room. She looked for York, maybe he followed her. Deep asleep in the chair beside her was Wash. He looked so sweet and innocent when he was sleeping.

  
She lay back against the pillows and tried to rest. The panic to find York had left. Wash’s calming presence calmed her down. She smiled affectionately at him and enjoyed a dreamless sleep.

 

“Good morning kiddies!”

Dr. Grey’s screeching woke them both up. Wash forgot where he was and almost slid off his chair. Carolina’s hair was a tangled mess from all the tossing and turning. It covered her eyes, she could hardly see.

  
“Oh shit, what’s going on?” It took her a second to figure out where she was.

  
She chuckled at their reactions. “Aww, I’m sorry guys. I hoped you both awake by now. My bad.”

  
Wash was so stiff, he had to stretch his muscles. “Well we’re awake now.” He gave Dr. Grey a little glare that she conviently ignored.

  
“Carolina, I’m glad to see you looking so well. You scared me half to death last night.”

  
Carolina looked confused, then she remembered. It was Wash’s turn to look confused. “What happened last night?”

  
Dr. Grey shook her head disapprovingly. “Someone decided to flatline on me during her operation.”

  
Carolina blushed, it wasn’t intentional. “I was dreaming, I was visiting with York, he wanted me to follow him, that’s all.”

  
Wash gave her a look. He thought after all these years, she would be over York. He didn’t know how to feel about it. Carolina wanted to change the subject.

  
“Doc, did you find out something in the biopsy?”

  
“Yes, it’s just as I feared, the tumors are malignant. Luckily the majority of them were removed with the reproductive organs. You shouldn’t need much chemo to clean out the remaining tumors.”

  
The mere mention of that made Carolina’s heart feel cold. She knew at this point, she was never having kids, but it still hurt. If York had lived, things would have been different. She would have considered having a family. But it was still painful.

  
“What I don’t understand is how I got cancer in the first place. I spent all my free time working out, I was strong and powerful. How could cancer even form in the first place?”

  
“Well you see, that may have been your downfall. Our cells are being created and dying constantly. Our immune systems shoot down the diseased or damaged cells, that keeps us safe. There is a such thing as too much activity, you wore your body out, it couldn’t keep up with the strain. While your body was trying to repair itself; surprise, these diseased cells didn’t get shot down. Boom, cancer forms.”

  
Carolina was confused, but it made sense, at least she thought so.

Wash was mesmerized. “Wow, I’m learning new stuff everyday. The human body is really complexed.”

  
He had grown since his first years as a Freelancer, he had matured with parenthood, but underneath, there was still that adorable dork that could make Carolina smile. It was always at his expense.

  
“Alrightee now, even you had a scare with your surgery, I think you’ll heal just fine from it. I will allow you to go home with Wash tomorrow with strict instructions of bed rest. You’ll be starting cycles of chemo; two days on then two days off for your first two weeks. We’ll see how you’re feeling from there.”

  
“What kind of side effects will I get from the treatments?”

  
“The usual stuff, nausea, vomiting, fatigue. Your chemo won’t have to be particularly strong, so these will be minimal.”

  
“Will I lose my hair?”

  
“Maybe, at least some of it. Like I said the chemo’s not too strong, so you may not. But very important to remember is to stay away from anyone with colds. Your immune system will be impaired. I mention this since you’ll be around two young kids.”

  
Wash got into the conversation. “Yeah, I’ll keep an eye on the kids. I’ll give ‘Lina a heads up to watch.”

  
“Good, I’ll give you the chemo schedule if you want to help her with the treatments.”

  
“Sure. Tucker and I will work around whatever schedule we need to.”

  
“Wow girlie, you have a great support system. Oh, I gave a surprise visit for you, Tucker brought the kids by to say hi. I thought you both could use it.”

  
Wash kind of cringed, he was afraid it was too much for her. Carolina actually perked up at the mention of the kids. Wash figured it was safe.

  
“Alright, bring in the three disasters.”

  
“Hey, I take offense at that.” Tucker was peeking in through the door. “I’m way better behaved than the kids.”

  
“Yeah, for a rotten twelve year old.”

Carolina loved to pick on Tucker. They had a mutual love/hate relationship over the years.

  
He came as close to Carolina’s bed as he dared to. “Oh yeah? You wanna discipline me? Bow chicka bow…OW!”

  
He got too close. Her fist landed perfectly on his shoulder. She chuckled evilly, that made her feel better, she hadn’t lost her touch. “I may be sick, but I could still kick your ass.”

  
“Damn, Okay, I was trying to help. At least I made you smile.” He looked at Dr. Grey. “You got an ice pack I can use?”

  
His shenanigans were interrupted when David cane running into the room with Chloe close behind him.

“Aunt ‘Lina! I missed you!” David jumped up on the bed with her. She put an arm around him, and cuddled him close.

  
“I missed you too kiddo.”

  
Chloe gently sat on the bed beside her. She was almost afraid to touch her. “Hey Aunt ‘Lina. I’m sorry, I don’t want to hurt you.”

  
“Hey Chloe girl.” Carolina wrapped her other arm around her. Chloe was surprised by how strong Carolina’s arms still were. “Trust me, you’re not going to hurt me.”

  
“Yeah, I’ll say.” Tucker was still whining over his hurt shoulder.

Everyone was chuckling at him.  
Carolina sat looking at Wash’s family. These characters would be her family for the next few months.

  
It was a strange, wonderful feeling.  



	9. Chapter 9

 

The first day at her new home was a strange one for Carolina. Wash drove her home in his new gray SUV that he hadn’t wanted.  

A car would have done just fine, but Tucker threw a fit about needing more room for the kids. Carolina felt this vehicle didn’t match Wash’s personality, but it was his life.

  
“Gee Wash, it’s a nice car you have here.” She sounded very forced, she was always a terrible liar.

  
Wash gave a smile, he caught her sarcasm. “Yeah yeah, I know. It was all Tucker’s idea. I guess it feels more like a ‘family’ car to him. Stuff like that’s important to him now.”

  
“The great Tucker family. Who would have thought you two would end up together, and that Tucker could ever act so mature?”

  
“He still isn’t, but he tries. Anyway, after you ditched me all those years ago, I had to move on. What did you expect me to do?”

  
Carolina felt uneasy about that topic. She still felt guilty after their failed ‘almost’ relationship. It was no big surprise to her how much Wash had loved her.

  
She hated to admit it, but leaving him was one of her worst mistakes. Wash would have been the one to help her heal her inner demons. But she wasn’t ready, so she fled.

  
When she came back, he was already in love with the most unlikely of partners. She wondered if Wash would have left Tucker if she was back in his life. She didn’t have the heart to try, so she left it alone.

Maybe that was the best theme for her life. That way, no one was going to get hurt except herself.

  
Thankfully, they arrived home before it could get anymore awkward. Tucker was hanging out on the porch with both the kids waiting them to come home.

  
David was the first to run to the car. He was always so hyper. “Aunt ‘Lina, I thought you’d never get here.” He grabbed ahold of her and she could barely walk.

  
“Well, with as slow as your Dad drives, it’s a wonder we’re here now. He should have let me drive.”

  
“Hey, If I let you behind the wheel, it would have been like suicide.” He turned his attention to his son. “David, let ‘Lina alone. You’ll plenty of time to see her. Let her in the house.”

  
Tucker made a big to do with holding the screen door open for her. “Your door, m’lady.” He watched her fists carefully in case she tried to hit him, he wanted to be able to duck this time.

  
She rolled her eyes at him, but was being agreeable. “Thank you sir.”

  
She moved her arm quickly as she grabbed the door to see if Tucker would react. He flinched and jumped back. She got a good chuckle over it. “Yeah, I thought so.”

  
“So Carolina, how long are you staying…?” Tucker couldn’t help being a smart ass at all opportunities.

  
Wash felt he had to be the gracious host. “Well ‘Lina, you know where everything is. I fixed you a room where the playroom used to be. I tried to pack you up some stuff you may need, but you hardly have anything in your apartment.”

  
“Yeah, I don’t stay there much. I practically live on base, usually in the gym. I never got around to filling my place with a lot of crap.”

  
“Makes sense. If there’s anything I may have forgotten, just let me know.”

  
Carolina nodded. “Thanks Wash.”

She walked into the bedroom to drop her overnight bag from the hospital on the bed. David and Chloe followed her.

  
“If you don’t like the room Aunt ‘Lina, you can have mine. It has all the best toys, I’ll give ‘em to you.” Little David was acting like the tour guide.

  
Chloe huffed at her little brother’s remark. “Yeah David, like she seriously wants your toys.” He looked hurt.

  
Carolina was amazed at the difference in Chloe over the last few years. She was so different from that scared little two year who she saved from her abusive mother. Carolina secretly enjoyed scaring the mother for how badly she scared chloe.

  
Right from the start, Chloe idolized Carolina, she wanted to be just like her. Chloe was so smart for a seven year and was already showing leadership skills by helping to care for the younger kids; she would make it.

  
Yet, the older she got, the more her personality reflected Tucker’s smart mouth attitude. Carolina gently put her hand on Chloe’s shoulder. “Be easy on him, he’s still little.”

  
Chloe nodded. “Sorry David.”

  
“That’s okay Chloe.” David was a very forgiving child. He took Carolina’s hand. “Wanna was my best cars?” He was proud to show off his prized matchbox car collection.

  
Wash stood back and watched her interactions with the kids. He felt confident having Carolina stay with them. She was always a good role model.

But now with this cancer scare, she will have to change her entire lifestyle, at least for a few months. Carolina and change never mixed. Wash didn’t know if she could.

  
She was never used to a domestic family life, she never had a normal one of her own. Her mother was killed when she was six, and her father was never around when she was a kid.

How did Wash get her to settle into his family life? Why did Wash feel like he was adopting another kid? How could he make her behave if she didn’t want to? So many questions, he was afraid he wouldn’t find enough answers.

  
“Since this Carolina’s first day here, what should we make for a welcome home dinner?” Wash tried to stay positive.

  
Her stomach lurched at the thought of food. She hadn’t even started the actual chemo yet, how would she make it through?

“Whatever you guys want is fine with me.”

  
Her face looked paler than usual. Wash was concerned. “Feeling okay?”

  
“Yeah…sure I’m fine. I’m going to go unpack and settle in. Dr. Grey said to make sure I rest.”

  
Wash narrowed his eyes. Something was bothering her. She had a compulsive personality, she didn’t know how to rest. He silently followed her. She sprawled out on her bed. She had a crumpled picture in her hand.

  
Wash recognized it as one of the last pictures taken of the Freelancers before all hell broke loose.

York posed with his arm around Carolina. That was the first time Wash knew that Carolina and York were officially a couple, and his young heart had been broken.

  
She buried her face in the picture and sobbed. Wash had never saw her cry like this before. His heart ached. When she broke up with Wash years ago, she said she never got over losing York, now he could see that was true.

  
He wanted to console her, but he walked away. It was better for her to cry this out in private. She was in a new place battling a killer disease while missing someone who died years ago…

  
She had to learn to let things go.  
  
  



	10. Chapter 10

 

“Damnit Wash, leave me alone. I am not a child.” Carolina’s face was red with embarrassment.

  
“Then stop acting like one. You were specifically told by the doctor to slow down. This is the third time I found you passed out from over exerting yourself.”

  
“I have to do something. I’m going crazy!”

  
“You can, working out is good for you. You can workout in the gym, you can go jogging, within a normal limit. Your level is ridiculous. One day, you’re going to get hurt and I won’t be here to catch it. I can’t watch you 24/7.” Wash felt like he had adopted a third child.

  
She slammed her bedroom door shut, and collapsed on the bed. She was so ashamed to admit that her head was spinning and she felt nauseous. She had only been in the chemo for two weeks, and already she felt that she was losing control of her body.

  
Wash gently knocked on the door, he couldn’t rest until he’d apologized to her. However, Carolina was still ticked.

“What do want Wash?” She wished she never agreed to stay here. She was already sick of the sight of his face.

  
“If I’m sorry for snapping at you, can we call a truce?”

  
Carolina already planned on forgiving him, so she nodded. “Sure, I guess so.”

  
“Good.” He tried to smile. “If you’re really this bored, I can get you an assignment that won’t involve you passing out.”

  
“What is it?” She was pretending to not be interested.

  
“Tucker just called and offered to take me out to dinner. You could babysit the kids for me. I already arranged for a play date with Grif and Simmons’ kids. You could walk them over.”

  
Carolina cringed. This is what she she had been reduced to; play dates. She couldn’t even say it with a straight face. “Yeah, that’s no problem.”

  
“Great, I’ll be leaving in the next few minutes. I’ll get the kids ready.”

  
Carolina waited until he was out of the room before attempting to stand. Her legs were still wobbly from earlier. She didn’t Wash to see it, he would only worry more than he already was.

  
“Chloe, David, Carolina’s going to take you next door.”

  
David grabbed his hand. “What about you Daddy?”

  
“You’re Dad and I are going out. Aunt ‘Lina’s babysitting.”

  
“Cool.” He dripped Wash’s hand and took Carolina’s instead. There was no reason for Wash to be jealous, but he felt a little twinge. At least he could leave knowing his kids were totally safe.

  
David held her hand the whole way to the Grif-Simmons house. They could hear the commotion of the kids playing in the back yard. Carolina looked over the fence.

  
She saw Grif reclining back in a lawn chair, pretending to be watching the kids. He could barely hold back a yawn as he struggled to stay awake. She saw Dex and Jake running around, but she didn’t see Mira.

  
“Hey Grif, I brought David and Chloe over to play instead of Wash.”

  
She startled him, he was already half asleep. “Oh yeah, come on in, the kids started playing army without you.”

  
“Where’s Mira at?”

  
“Ugh, she’s not in a good mood and neither is Simmons. He’s punishing Mira, at least that’s what she thinks. That’s why the boys and I came outside, to stay out of the crossfire.”

  
“Why, what did Mira do?”

  
“Nothing for once. Her allergies flared up last night, and now Simmons wants to keep her sealed in a plastic bubble. She came to me crying that she couldn’t play with her brothers. I tried to talk him out of it, and he started his crap with me. So I left.”

  
“Oh man, that can’t be easy on her. I’ll go talk to him.”

  
Carolina tapped on the back door. Simmons opened it in a huff, getting ready to yell. When he saw who it was, he calmed down. “Hi, come on in.” He looked all flustered.

  
“I hear you’re having trouble with a certain redhead?”

  
He sighed. “Yes, she’s driving me crazy. I don’t want to end up having to take her to the hospital for another asthma attack. It scares me more than it does her anymore. She’s being kept inside for her own good. Grif is no help as usual.”

  
There was a lot of commotion coming from the living room. “Mira Kai, I swear if you break one more thing, you’re grounded.”

  
She came into the kitchen looking very upset. “I already am grounded. It’s not fair, I didn’t do anything.”

  
Simmons wearily sighed. “I know you didn’t, you’re not being punished. You were up all night sniffling as it is.”

  
“But Dad, I feel fine.” She flopped down at the table and refused to look at him. When he tried to touch her shoulder, she pulled away.

  
“Honey, I just don’t want you to get sick.”

  
Mira was having trouble sitting still, she had so much energy, she needed to get it out. Carolina knew just how she felt. Wash had been picking on her lately for her active lifestyle, and poor Mira was going through the same. Guess it really was for both of their goods. The two invalids should stick together.

  
“I know what could help. Mira, how about taking a short jog with me down the block?”

  
Mira’s eyes lit up, she always loved working out with Carolina. She was so much fun. Sometimes Mira wished her Dad could lighten up like that. “Yeah yeah yeah.”

She jumped up ready to go.  
“Oh no you don’t. Mira you can’t possibly go outside today. There’s so much you’re allergic to.”

  
“Simmons, lighten up. It’s not good for her to be cooped up like this either. Light exercise is good for asthma. I’m sick too, so it’s not like we’re going far. She’ll be fine.”

  
Simmons thought about it. “No, I don’t think so…” Carolina led Mira to the door. “No seriously, she can’t go outside.”

  
Carolina let Mira through the door, before she looked back at Simmons. “Yeah yeah, shut up nerd.” She closed the door right in his face. Mira giggled over his reaction.

  
Carolina made a face. “God, how can you stand him sometimes?”

  
Mira’s giggling got louder as she shrugged. “You know, he’s my Dad, that’s his job. He grows on you though.”

  
That made Carolina smile. As mad as Mira was at her Dad, she still loved him and forgave him. That was family, unconditional love. It made Carolina tear up about her own parents. Two people she hardly even knew.

  
She thought the Reds and Blues had been idiots, but these four ended up being wonderful parents.

  
Who would have seen that coming?  



	11. Chapter 11

 

A month into the chemo treatments, and Carolina was really feeling it, so was Wash. He was at the breakfast table with Tucker and the kids, waiting for Carolina to join them.

  
Wash was looking worried. “What is taking her so long?”

  
Tucker has the solution. “Hey ‘Lina, hurry up.” He shouted loudly.

  
Chloe jumped and shot her Dad a dirty look. “Really Dad? You’re not supposed to shout in the house.” She giggled at him.

  
“Okay, Wash Junior. One is bad enough, I don’t need two.” For being Tucker’s biological daughter, she somehow inherited a lot of Wash’s traits.

  
David joined in. “I can shout louder than that Daddy!” David was laughing and almost spilled his orange juice.

  
Wash had to put a stop to this. “Don’t you dare. You be better behaved than your father is.” Wash couldn’t help but smile. He had a whacko family sometimes.

  
Carolina came to the kitchen with a new shorter hairdo. “Sorry I was so late.”

  
Tucker dropped his spoon. “Woah, what’s with the new ‘do there?”

  
Carolina looked flustered as she tried to straighten her hair. “Well, it’s been coming out too much lately, so I figured I should chop some off. Actually, it’s easier to take care of at this length.”

  
The bright red hair that used to hang halfway down her back was now at shoulder length. She tried to be positive about it. This was only hair, it would grow back. She felt so self conscious about. She hated drawing attention to her side effects of the chemo.

  
Wash understood, he casually changed the subject. “It’s looks good like that. Here, you want some eggs? They just finished frying.”

  
He scooped some on her plate. Her stomach lurched at the sight of them. Eating without getting sick has been an ongoing problem for her.

  
She picked up her fork and tried to eat a bite. Ugh, she wanted to spit it back out. Tucker must have cooked these. She noticed no one was really eating either, so she didn’t feel too bad.

  
She mostly pushed them around the plate so Tucker would think she was actually eating. Wash caught on, but was trying not to be concerned. He was having a hard enough keeping his own meal down.

  
Chloe noticed. “What’s wrong Aunt ‘Lina, don’t you like the scrambled eggs either?”

  
Carolina wasn’t expecting her to notice. “What? Of course I like the eggs. What’s wrong that you don’t like them?”

  
Chloe shrugged. “I don’t like Dad’s cooking that much.”

  
Tucker was offended. “Thanks a lot. I went through a lot for those eggs.”

  
David was busy flattening his eggs on the plate. “Sorry Daddy, they’re yucky.”

  
“Great, the one time I try to do something nice. Oh well, at least Wash appreciates my effort, right babe?”

  
Wash tried to swallow a bite, but choked on it. “Sure hon, these are the best eggs I ever had.” He made a face as he tried not to gag.

  
“I’m surrounded by ingrates.”

  
David finished torturing his eggs and jumped up from the table.

  
“Where are you going?” Tucker was still in a bad mood.

  
“Outside to play. Chloe, can you help me with playing baseball again?”

  
“Sure, but only for a little while.” She gladly wanted out of the kitchen. “Want to come play with us Daddy?” She was feeling guilty for hurting his feelings about his cooking.

  
Tucker couldn’t help smiling. “Yep, I’ll be there in a few seconds.”

  
Carolina took her plate to the sink. “So Tucker, what’s the big occasion that you tried to cook for?”

  
“Glad you brought that up. Since the kids are outside,Wash, I need to talk to you.”

  
Wash should have known better. Tucker was always scheming. “What trouble did you get yourself into this time?”

  
“Nothing is wrong. Do you remember that today is our anniversary?”

  
Wash looked confused. “No, we were married in November, this is only June.”

  
Tucker sighed and shook his head. “No, I mean it’s the anniversary of our first date.”

  
Carolina was even amazed. “You have the brain of a Neanderthal, how could you remember that?”

  
“I remember each of my ex relationships vividly. I had just broken up with Kaikaiana Grif. Wash was single cause you totally stomped on his heart, so we kinda got together. This is our true anniversary day.”

  
Wash was touched that Tucker remembered that. It was a bittersweet moment for him.

  
“So now for your gift, we got plans to go away for the entire weekend, no kids allowed. How about that?”

  
“Sure…no, we got to ask Grif and Simmons if they can watch the kids for us.”

  
“You know they’ll be cool with it. We’ve babysat for them. I’ll call them later.”

  
Carolina huffed and very loudly set down her coffee cup on the counter. “You do know that you idiots could have asked me. I’m already here and the kids listen better to me than they do to you guys.”

  
Tucker shrugged. “I don’t care, as long we can get away, it doesn’t matter who watches them. If you two will excuse me, there’s two kids waiting for a play date with their favorite Dad.”

  
Carolina was so frustrated. So now she couldn’t babysit because she had cancer? She felt so worthless. She sat back down at the table, forcing back the tears she didn’t want to shed for herself.

  
Wash came up behind her and put his hands on her shoulders. “Hey ‘Lina, it’s great if you want to watch the kids. I didn’t want to assume and volunteer you for the job.”

  
“Sure Wash, I get it, it’s all right. You and Tucker go plan your weekend together. You know the kids will be safe here with me.”

  
“Alright, we’ll do that. I’m going to head outside and see if Tucker needs any help with coaching David. Want to come too?”

  
“Nah, maybe later. I want to finish this coffee first.” She sat and stared at the cup as the coffee went cold on her. She wanted to belong here, but she felt like an intruder.

  
She loved Wash and the kids, hell she could even tolerate Tucker, but this wasn’t the life meant for her. When or if she recovered from her cancer, what would happen to her then? Would she even be able to pick up where she left off?

  
There were so many more cases out there to be worked on, some many more bad guys to arrest. If she wasn’t there to do it, then who would?

Junior was still young, he could only handle so much on his own. He needed Carolina to show him the ropes. He kind of felt like her son at this point. She was letting all of Chorus down.

  
What scared her the most was that she didn’t know if she would even live long enough to see her own recovery…  
  
  
  
  
  



	12. Chapter 12

 

“All right guys, you better listen to Aunt Carolina whole we’re gone. I mean it.”

  
Chloe faked a salute. “Yes sir Daddy!” She giggled over it.

  
Wash was trying to be serious, but he couldn’t help cracking a smile. “How about you David?”

  
David was sitting in the middle of the living room, coloring away and not paying attention. “How ‘bout me what?”

  
“Are you going to behave for Aunt Carolina?”

  
“Course I will, I love Aunt ‘Lina.” He let out a big sneeze.

  
“Bless you buddy. Come here, are you feeling alright?” Wash frowned as he felt David’s forehead. David was sniffling, but he had no fever.

  
“I’m Okay Daddy.” He struggled to break away from Wash and was focused on his coloring book.

  
Tucker came out of the bedroom with two overnight bags. “I packed you a few things for the weekend babe. I got a good idea what all you’d want.”

  
Wash went to take the bag, then had second thoughts. “I don’t know, I don’t think it’s a good idea to leave David.”

  
“Huh? You certainly don’t want to take him do you? He’ll be fine, it was only one sneeze.”

  
“No, I have the bad feeling that he’s coming down with something. With Carolina’s chemo treatments, she doesn’t have much of an immune system. I don’t want to put her in danger.”

  
Chloe looked all worried. “What, do you mean Aunt ‘Lina could die?”

  
This was the first time Chloe had acknowledged that she knew how dangerous cancer could be. Wash and Carolina tried to hide that from the kids. They didn’t want either of them to worry about her.

  
Wash hated lying to Chloe, but he couldn’t avoid it. “No, of course she isn’t going to die. It’s only that she feels weak sometimes, and I don’t want to burden her.”

  
“Wash, what are you telling her?” Carolina stood in the living room entrance. She didn’t look happy.

  
“Uh-oh babe, you’re busted.” Tucker couldn’t hold back a laugh. He made his way to the door.

  
“I don’t know if David is getting sick or not. I don’t think it’s a good idea to leave him.”

  
“Even with cancer, I think I manage taking care of two kids.”

  
“Okay, I give up, you win.” He grabbed his bag. “David, we’re going to be leaving, do you want to say goodbye?”

  
He jumped up from his coloring book with a page in his hand. “I colored this for you in case you miss me while you’re gone.”

  
“Aww, Thanks buddy. I’ll miss you.” He gave David and Chloe big hugs, Tucker did the same.  
“Carolina, here’s the number where we’re staying, don’t hesitate to use it. You three all have fun.”

Wash had a little trouble actually leaving. He wasn’t used to being separated from his kids.

  
“Whew, those two are finally gone. What do you guys want to do first?”

  
“You wanna play more baseball David?” Now that he was actually learning to play, Chloe was more eager to play with him.

  
“Nah, I don’t wanna. My throat kinda hurts. Can I have some juice Aunt ‘Lina?”

  
“Sure, come on, we’ll all have some.”

  
“Since my Dads aren’t here, can I have some coffee?” Chloe was hopeful.

  
“Nice try girlie, it’s juice or nothing.”

  
They talked some around the kitchen table. David seemed to be feeling better. “Since David doesn’t want to play baseball, can we play a board game? Maybe Chutes and Ladders. He’s old enough to play that.” Chloe was into having family time like Tucker was.

  
“What do you say David?”

  
He thought about it. “Okay!”

  
Chloe got the game together and Carolina wracked her brain, trying to remember how to play it. Both kids could beat her; well, she kind of planned it that way. Soon both Chloe and David had both won plenty of games.

  
Carolina noticed the time. “It’s getting late. David, it’s already past your bedtime. Chloe, you start getting ready while I out David to bed?”

  
Soon he was settled in his bed with the dinosaur bedspread and Carolina tucked him in with his stuffed elephant. He looked so sad.

  
“What’s wrong David?”

  
“I miss my Daddies, they don’t leave much, I don’t like it when they do.”

  
“Aw sweetie , they’ll be back soon. I can sit with you for awhile if you want.”

  
He nodded, then he sneezed again. He didn’t look too good. Carolina sat and held his hand, he felt all clammy.

She felt his forehead, it was really warm. She went to the medicine cabinet and grabbed some baby Tylenol for him. He choked on it, but he took it for her.

  
Shit, now what did she do? Dr. Grey said not to be around anyone with a cold. She had a compromised immune system, she was endangering herself. But poor little David needed her. He didn’t have his dads to comfort him. He needed Carolina. She was like a mother to him.

  
“Don’t leave me Aunt ‘Lina. I don’t feel good.” He looked like he was on the verge of crying.

  
Her instincts told her that she shouldn’t stay with him. She should call Simmons over or call Wash to come home. That would be the smart thing to do. She looked down at that sad little face, those big brown eyes looked at her, begging her to stay. Her heart melted. She couldn’t leave him.

  
She stroked back his dark brown hair and held his hand. “Don’t worry, I’m here. I won’t leave you.”

  
Chloe poked her head into the room. “Aunt ‘Lina, I thought you couldn’t be around David if he has a cold. You’ll get sick.” She looked all worried.

  
Carolina pushed that worry from her head. “No, David’s not that sick, it won’t hurt me. Anyway, he’s so little, he needs to be taken care of. Can you get ready for bed for me, please?”

  
Chloe looked satisfied with that answer. “Sure, night Aunt ‘Lina.”

  
“Night honey.”

  
She took care of David all through the night. His little cold had turned into a big infection by the middle of the night. Despite giving Tylenol and keeping a cold compress on his forehead, she couldn’t get his fever down. She was panicking.

  
By daybreak, his fever suddenly broke. He was crying and shivering. She held him in her arms, he laid his head against her shoulder. All he wanted was to be held.

She noticed how far his fever went down, she was never more relieved. By early morning, he finally fell into a peaceful sleep.

  
She laid him down in his bed and covered him up. She was going to try to get some rest herself. She heard Chloe getting up, so she gave up and went to join her.

  
She figured she could make herself some coffee. She wasn’t aware of her own fever that broke out during the night. She was all concerned with David’s.

  
Chloe looked at Carolina when she got to the kitchen. “Oh, you don’t look so good.”

  
Only then was Carolina aware of how terrible she felt. “I’m just really tired. I was up all night with David. I’m fine, really I am…”

  
Right in mid sentence, she passed out. Chloe screamed at the same time her body hit the floor.

Carolina tried to move, tried to comfort Chloe, but everything was going dark.

  
  



	13. Chapter 13

 

Carolina moaned, she couldn’t open her eyes. A far away voice called. York’s gold form appeared. “Learn to let it go ‘Lina. You’ll be seeing me again soon enough; go and live your life.”

  
“No, York don’t leave.” She struggled to move. She wanted to go with him.

  
“Carolina, for god’s sake, wake up woman. You’re pulling your oxygen tube out.”

  
She jumped awake. “Where am I?”

  
She had so many tubes and wires connected to her, she couldn’t move. She saw those familiar violet blue eyes of Dr. Grey looking so disapprovingly down at her.

  
A new thought panicked her. “The kids…I left them alone!” Despite the tubes, she tried to get up.

  
“No, don’t even think about getting up.” Grey forced her back down. “The kids are fine. Chloe is a very mature little girl. She called Simmons and he came rushing over to help you and David. The kids are safe.”

  
“Oh, thank goodness.” She collapsed back against the pillows. Then she was aware of the look on the doctor’s face, the way her left eyebrow raised. Grey was never known to be entirely stable, she was freaking Carolina out.

“What!”

  
“How many rules did I give you on handling chemo? What did I specifically say about being around people with colds?”

  
“I know, I know. I couldn’t help it. David is still practically a baby, he needed me. I love those kids, I couldn’t say no to him.”

  
Dr. Grey softened down her face. “Okay, that’s fair. If the roles were reversed, I’d do the same for Maddie. Still, you gave yourself a good dose of pneumonia for your heroics. You’ll be stuck in the hospital here with me for quite a while.”

  
“Ugh, just shoot me now and get it over with.”

  
“Aww, so glad you still have your sense of humor, even if it is hostile. But don’t worry, I will make sure you can’t take the easy way out, you’ll get to enjoy every second of your torture. Now won’t that be fun?”

  
Carolina turned pale, she was desperate to change the subject. “How is David doing?”

  
“Oh, that little sweetie pie is feeling much better. I gave him a little stronger medicine and some antibiotics. He’s been talking poor Simmons’ ears off ever since. He’s been pestering to come and see you.”

  
In spite of how terrible she felt, she had to smile. David had to be the sweetest kid on the planet.

  
“Other good news, Wash should be here soon. He said he and Tucker were rushing home.”

  
“Oh god, that’s all I need. I ruined their vacation, and put myself and a child in danger. I have some major ‘I told you so’s’ coming from Wash.”

  
“No, you’re exaggerating. When I talked to him over the phone, he sounded like he was blaming himself.” She patted Carolina’s arm. “Don’t worry about it, just get some rest.”

  
There was a loud clatter in the room next door. Dr. Grey frowned. “Uh-oh, that’s David’s room.”

  
They heard Simmons call out. “David, you’re not allowed to see Aunt Carolina, stay in bed.”

  
“No, I want Aunt ‘Lina.”

  
Dr. Grey went to the hallway to check. She started laughing. “Oh no, the patient’s escaping. We have a runner!”

  
Carolina tried to laugh, but it made her cough. She wanted to sit up so she could see, but these damned tubes wouldn’t let her.

  
Out of nowhere, she heard Wash’s voice. “Woah there buddy, where do you think you’re going?”

  
“To see Aunt ‘Lina.”

  
“You shouldn’t bother her.”

  
“I need to apologize. I made her sick, I didn’t mean to. I don’t want her to be mad at me.”

  
It was hard for Carolina to talk, she wasn’t sure Wash would hear her. “Wash, bring him here.” She started coughing again.

  
Wash came in with David in his arms. “Easy there ‘Lina.” His eyed filled with tears when he saw how sick she looked. “David, she doesn’t feel well, you can’t stay long, you’re still sick too.”

  
“‘K Daddy.” He leaned over to give Carolina a kiss on the cheek. “I’m sorry for giving you my cold. I love you Aunt ‘Lina.”

  
She reached over to squeeze his hand. “That’s quite all right, it was worth me getting sick to see that you’re feeling better. I love you too kiddo.”

  
Wash put David down. “Alright, you saw her, now go back with Uncle Simmons. You need to rest or you won’t be able to go home.”

  
He turned his attention to Carolina. Now she was going to be in for it. She would hear the whole stupid lecture. She knew how Wash loved to over react.

  
He surprised her. “‘Lina, I’m sorry. I feel like this all my fault. I let Tucker talk me into this weekend, it’s been nothing but hell.”

  
“Why, don’t you want to get away from the house and the kids sometimes?”

  
“Yes and no. I knew David well enough to know his little cold would turn into a big deal. And I know you well enough to know you would protect that kid from anything, even from germs. I was worried the whole night we were gone. It ruined everything, and now you and David are in the hospital.”

  
It was completely the opposite of what she expected. “It’s also my fault. The doctor told me so, and I still did it. I could have just easily called Simmons over. He would’ve taken great care of David. But I was stubborn.”

  
“Yeah, we both are. I guess that’s why we get along so well.”

  
Tucker came into the room. “Hey guys. I picked up Chloe, she’s visiting David. I told her she can probably come in and see Carolina too. I hope.”

  
Carolina gave a weak smile. “Sure. Oh, and Tucker?”

  
He turned and looked. “Yeah?”

  
“When I get out of the hospital, I’m planning on retiring from all the action. If you were serious awhile back, we could start the old rock band back up again. Tell Grif to dust off his guitar, and I can handle the lead vocals again.”

  
Tucker gave a quick wide eyed look of panic, then he tried to recover. “Uh… Yeah sure. We’d love to have you sing again…you’re the best in Chorus…” He darted out of the room quickly. Even when Carolina was sick, she was still dangerous.

  
She gave an evil little chuckle. She forgot how much fun it was terrorizing the boys like that.

  
Wash smiled, he was glad she was feeling better. “You are so mean to the troops.”

  
“I know, I love seeing them squirm. Lucky for them, I’ll be in here for a while.”

  
At least her attitude had improved about being sick. Wash was amazed, maybe now she could relax enough to want to beat the cancer, instead of driving herself crazy and working against her chemo.

  
Wash held her hand. “Don’t worry, no matter how long it takes, I’m here. I’ll be with you every step of the way; to remission and whatever else life throws at us.”

  
Carolina squeezed his hand back. It helped knowing Wash was there. She was THE Carolina, the true warrior, she would beat this.

  
She could feel York looking on with approval. He knew she would be safe.

  
  
  



End file.
